The Letter to Thyatira, 2:18-29

February 6, 1994
H. Van Dyke Parunak
Overview

1. Ephesus: striving for organizational dominance, has become

superficial.

2. Smyrna: life in the midst of apparent death.

3. Pergamos: danger of compromise.

4. Thyatira: compromise has gone further.

A garrison city, guarding an important road. Became a major

manufacturing & trading center in peace-time; the home of Lydia,
whom we meet in Philippi trading purple cloth.

A. Description of the Lord, 18

Three descriptions:

1. "Son of God." The only place this title appears in Rev.

a) Fittingly summarizes his position as the God-Man, set forth in
1:17-18.
b) On the basis of Psalm 2, entitles him to give his followers
the rod of iron (Rev. 2:27).

2. Eyes like flames of fire. 1:14. Our eyes depend on light; when it
fails, they cannot see. But darkness cannot hide from him. His
eyes bring their own piercing light to penetrate our secretes.
"All things are naked and open unto the eyes of him with whom we
have to do."

3. "Feet like fine brass." A very rare alloy (most ancients had only
bronze). Requires zinc, which is very difficult to obtain in
metallic form. There is evidence that Thyatira prided itself on
its ability to produce this alloy. But the Lord is not impressed;
it is nothing new to him.

4. Eyes and feet together imply that he both sees and acts; cf.
v.23.

B. Commendation, 19
1. Presents the three Pauline graces (faith, hope, love), each
accompanied with a word indicating the practical expression.
a) Work and love. True love expresses itself through deeds.
Focuses on our relation to other believers.
b) Faith and service. Focuses on our relation to the Lord. We
cannot truly serve the Lord unless we believe in him; true
faith will in turn produce dedicated service. We cannot claim
him as Savior unless we are willing to have him as Lord.
c) Patience (cf. Paul's "hope") and works. Patience means that we
don't give up in our efforts, in spite of opposition and
difficulty. Thus focuses on our relation to Satan's

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 opposition.

2. "The last are more than the first." Contrast 2:5. Unlike Ephesus,
whose inner spiritual graces have dwindled over time, Thyatira
has grown stronger.

C. Condemnation, 20-21

1. The sin in question is the same as in Pergamos: fornication, and

fellowship with idolaters. Two basic items in the decision of the
Jerusalem conference in Acts 15 (the other two were eating blood
or strangled things). We'll see evidence later that this decree
is in John's mind here.

2. This problem stems from shortcomings in ecclesiology.

a) Woman prophet? Sure, Acts 21:8-9, daughters of Philip--but
when there's a message for a man, God sends a man.
b) "Calls herself a prophet." The call should come from God, and
the recognition from the assembly. Watch out for
self-appointed ministers.

3. Compare the descriptions of this error through the chapter.

Summary table: note pivot between NT leader and ID of the error.

Ephesus, 6 Pergamos,14-15 Thyatira, 20

NT Leader Nicholas Nicholas
OT Leader Balaam Jezebel
Error ID Idols & Idols &
Fornication Fornication
Verb Hate Have Suffer

a) We now have three names associated with it.

1) Called "Nicolaitans" in 2:6,15 after their contemporary
leader. Nicolas of Antioch from Acts 6:5? A proselyte to
Judaism; perhaps lured back to compromise?
2) Compared with Balaam in 2:14. Hired by an unbeliever to
curse Israel.
3) Compared with Jezebel, wife of Ahab and proponent of Baal,
here. Worse than Balaam; her influence is brought in
through a putative believer (her husband, nominally a
Yahwist).

b) The progression in names reflects the church's response.

1) Ephesus: recognizes the error and judges it.
2) Pergamos: They are under attack from an enemy. They "have"
those who hold the doctrine of Balaam; they need to wake up
and realize the danger in which they stand.
3) Thyatira: They not only "have" such people, but "suffer,"
permit, one to exercise a responsible role as a prophet in
the assembly.

D. Threat, 22-23
Three groups are threatened. With two of them, there is clear

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 implication of the potential for repentance.

1. 21, 22a. She had a chance to repent, and was not willing, so she
is cast into a bed. Probably a reference to sickness; out of the
nine other times we read of beds in the NT, in five of them they
hold sick people.

2. 22b. Those who commit adultery with her

a) Who are these? Not her disciples, who are called "her
children," 23. Rather, these are the responsible brethren in
the church who have tolerated her evil teaching, and allowed
her to produce those disciples.

b) They will join her in "great tribulation," some chastisement

during their own time. Cf. 1 Cor. 11:30.

NB: This phrase cannot refer here to Daniel's 70th week; the
leaders of the church in Thyatira have all passed on by now.
If saved, they will be raised before the 70th week; if not,
after. In either case, they will miss it. Note that in Acts
7:11, the same phrase appears, and again in reference to
something past from our current perspective. Matt. 24:21 does
use the phrase to refer to the coming time of trouble, as may
Rev. 7:14 (the only one of the four occurrences to take the
article, "THE great tribulation").

c) Her chance for repentance is already past; they still have the
opportunity to repent. MT reads, not "their deeds," but "her
deeds." Their guilt is tolerating her baneful influence in the
assembly; cf. 1 Cor. 5. The Achan Affliction all over again.

3. 23a. Her children: those who follow her teaching. From "a bed"
(of sickness) to "great tribulation" to "death." No room for
repentance indicated here.

4. 23b. The Lord's objective in all this: not only to purge the
Thyatiran church, but also to provide an example of his judgment
to others, so that they may fear. Cf. the effect of the judgment
on Ananias and Sapphira in Jerusalem, Acts 5:11. We must not only
serve the Lord with a motive of LOVE, but also shun sin because
we FEAR him.

Note his double scrutiny: of motives as well as deeds; inward as

well as outward. Man looks on the outward appearance; God, on the
heart.

E. Command: Hold Fast, 24-25

1. Those to whom it is addressed: those who have not embraced her

doctrine, either as disciples or by tolerating it in the
assembly.

The Nicolaitans' own description of this teaching is "the deep

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 things of Satan." They felt that the true believer could not be
hurt by looking into the things of Satan; indeed, that only by
understanding them could they effectively oppose them. But we are
not to "intrude into those things that we have not seen," Col.
2:18; rather, we should (Col. 3:2) "set our affection on things
above, not on things on the earth." The "deep things" we are to
pursue are those "of God," 1 Cor. 2:10.

2. "No other burden" recalls Acts 15:28, the decision of the

Jerusalem conference. They are to continue to show forth the
vitality of their love, faith, and patience through godly living.

F. Promise to Overcomers, 26-29

This one reverses the order of the promise and the exhortation to
hear.

1. Only here, in the central epistle, is "overcoming" defined; it is

"keeping my deeds to the end." No easy believism (faith without
works); no excuses for falling away. This is the perseverence of
the saints.

2. Two gifts promised to those who do overcome:

a) 26-28a, A share with Christ in the rule the Father promised

him in Psa. 2:8,9, in keeping with his title as "Son of God."
Anticipates 22:5, "they shall reign" with him "for ever and
ever."

b) 28b, "the morning star." Cf. 22:16; Christ himself. What does
it mean to be given Christ in his character as the morning
star? To see him arise, and bring with him the world to come.
This is a promise of his return.

Summary
Note the contrast with Ephesus, along two lines: greater inner
spirituality; less discernment re. error. Suggests that strength in
one area is likely to be paired with weakness in the other. Where do
we stand? Highly discerning, like Ephesus; therefore greatly in need
of having our love, faith, and hope kindled.